Systems and methods for providing information related to tagged items represented in video stream content

ABSTRACT

Systems and methods directed advertising via a tagged video stream are provided. Content and a tag associated with a product represented by at least a portion of the content may be received by a media device. The media device may be associated with at least one end user. The content may correspond to television programming. The content may be output by the media device for display. A user selection corresponding to the tag associated with the product represented by at least the portion of the content may be processed by the media device. The user selection may be received during display of at least the portion of the content. Responsive to the user selection, the media device may facilitate provision of information related to the product represented by at least the portion of the content to a second device and/or an account associated with the at least one end user.

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATION

This Application is a continuation of U.S. nonprovisional applicationSer. No. 15/198,796, filed Jun. 30, 2016, entitled “SYSTEMS AND METHODSFOR PROVIDING INFORMATION RELATED TO TAGGED ITEMS REPRESENTED IN VIDEOSTREAM CONTENT,” which application is a continuation of U.S.nonprovisional application Ser. No. 14/214,147, filed Mar. 14, 2014,entitled “SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR PROVIDING INFORMATION RELATED TOTAGGED ITEMS REPRESENTED IN VIDEO STREAM CONTENT,” now U.S. Pat. No.9,420,343, issued Aug. 16, 2016, which claims priority to U.S.provisional application 61/790,701, filed Mar. 15, 2013, entitled“TAGGED TELEVISION PROGRAMMING STREAMS,” the entire disclosures of whichare hereby incorporated by reference for all purposes.

BACKGROUND

The present disclosure relates in general to television devices, and,more specifically, but not by way of limitation, to televisionprogramming streams.

As value, use, access, and demand corresponding to information continueto increase, television viewers have come to expect that theirtelevision receivers offer a number of robust and useful features.Additionally, advertisers demand more of the products and services theyuse than ever before. Companies are expected to compete to providegreater and greater levels of accuracy and more tailored serviceofferings. Accessing sources of information that have traditionally beenunavailable is now expected. There is a need in the television serviceprovider space to provide enhanced access to information.

BRIEF SUMMARY

The present disclosure relates in general to television devices, and,more specifically, but not by way of limitation, to televisionprogramming streams.

In one aspect, a method for directed advertising via a tagged videostream is disclosed. Content and a tag associated with a productrepresented by at least a portion of the content may be received by amedia device. The media device may be associated with at least one enduser. The content may correspond to television programming. The contentmay be output by the media device for display. A user selectioncorresponding to the tag associated with the product represented by atleast the portion of the content may be processed by the media device.The user selection may be received during display of at least theportion of the content. Responsive to the user selection, the mediadevice may facilitate provision of information related to the productrepresented by at least the portion of the content to a second deviceand/or an account associated with the at least one end user.

In another aspect, a media device to facilitate directed advertising viaa tagged video stream is disclosed. The media device may include one ormore processors and a memory communicatively coupled with and readableby the one or more processors and having stored thereinprocessor-readable instructions which, when executed by the one or moreprocessors, cause the one or more processors to perform one or more ofthe following. Content and a tag associated with a product representedby at least a portion of the content may be received. The media devicemay be associated with at least one end user. The content may correspondto television programming. The content may be output for display. A userselection corresponding to the tag associated with the productrepresented by at least the portion of the content may be processed. Theuser selection may be received during display of at least the portion ofthe content. Responsive to the user selection, provision of information,the information being related to the product represented by at least theportion of the content to a second device and/or an account associatedwith the at least one end user, may be facilitated.

In yet another aspect, a non-transitory processor-readable medium isdisclosed. The non-transitory processor-readable medium may includeprocessor-readable instructions which, when executed by one or moreprocessors, cause the one or more processors to perform one or more ofthe following. Content and a tag associated with a product representedby at least a portion of the content may be received. The content maycorrespond to television programming. The content may be output fordisplay. A user selection corresponding to the tag associated with theproduct represented by at least the portion of the content may beprocessed. The user selection may be received during display of at leastthe portion of the content. Responsive to the user selection, provisionof information, the information being related to the product representedby at least the portion of the content to a device and/or an accountassociated with at least one end user, may be facilitated.

In some embodiments, the device or second device may be a mobilecomputing device or a display associated with the media device. In someembodiments, the facilitating provision of the information related tothe product may include processing the information related to theproduct and transmitting the information related to the product to thedevice. In some embodiments, the facilitating provision of theinformation related to the product may include transmitting anindication, based at least in part on the tag, to a service providersystem to prompt the provision of the information related to the productrepresented by at least the portion of the content to the second deviceand/or the account associated with the at least one end user. In someembodiments, the indication to the service provider system may furtherprompt updating of a database to indicate an association between the tagand the account associated with the at least one end user. In someembodiments, the indication may include account information and taginformation. In some embodiments, the information related to the productmay include a link to data maintained by a provider associated with theproduct.

Further areas of applicability of the present disclosure will becomeapparent from the detailed description provided hereinafter. It shouldbe understood that the detailed description and specific examples, whileindicating various embodiments, are intended for purposes ofillustration only and are not intended to necessarily limit the scope ofthe disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A further understanding of the nature and advantages of variousembodiments may be realized by reference to the following figures. Inthe appended figures, similar components or features may have the samereference label. Further, various components of the same type may bedistinguished by following the reference label by a dash and a secondlabel that distinguishes among the similar components. When only thefirst reference label is used in the specification, the description isapplicable to any one of the similar components having the same firstreference label irrespective of the second reference label.

FIG. 1 shows an example media content distribution system, in accordancewith certain embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a simplified illustration of an embodiment of a contenthandling system, in accordance with certain embodiments of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 3 shows a simplified block diagram of a television receiver, inaccordance with certain embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 shows an example method, in accordance with certain embodimentsof the present disclosure.

FIG. 5 shows an example computing system or device, in accordance withcertain embodiments of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Content provided to television receivers by a television serviceprovider may be tagged. Such tags may be used for directed advertising.For example, a tag may be associated a product or service associatedwith a particular commercial. A tag may also be associated with aproduct or service associated with content within a television program(e.g., a dress an actress is wearing). By a user providing input via auser interface during a period of time during which content associatedwith the tag is presented, the user may be provided additionalinformation about the product or service. Additionally, for providingsuch additional information about the product, the television serviceprovider may collect a fee from the goods or service provider associatedwith the tag.

If a user provides input via the user interface (e.g., a selection ofuser-selectable option associated with particular product-relatedcontent being presented) that may trigger a request for tag information,the tag which is currently active (e.g., associated with the period oftime during which the user input was received) may be indicated to thetelevision service provider in some embodiments. The television serviceprovider may store data indicating a user account and the tag associatedwith the request from the television receiver. Additional data about theproduct or service may be provided to the user. In some embodiments,such additional information is transmitted to an email account of theuser (which email account may have been previously linked to the useraccount or may be provided by user via one or more user-selectableoptions at a time corresponding to user selection of tagged content)and/or may be made available via a specialized application on acomputerized user device (e.g., a tablet computer). In some embodiments,the user device and/or the television display device is provided with alink, which directs the user to a website associated with the goods orservice provider. The television service provider may receive a firstfee if the user requests information related to the tag and a second(possibly greater) fee if the user actually accesses information on theproduct or service (e.g., via the link). As such, the link may access asystem of the television service provider but may be redirected orforwarded to a website associated with the goods or service provider,thus allowing the television service provider to log whether the userhas accessed the link.

In some embodiments, if the television receiver is not connected withthe Internet, information may be transmitted locally, via a localnetwork, to a user device. This information may include additionalinformation about where the user can learn information about the productor service associated with the tag. In some embodiments, a link may bepresented to a user via a display device. This link may be specific tothe product and/or the user account. By using this link, the user maygain information about the product and/or service and, in some cases,could be presented with purchase options. The television serviceprovider may receive a fee if the user accesses the link for informationon the product or service. As such, the link may access a system of thetelevision service provider but may be redirected or forwarded to awebsite associated with the goods or service provider, thus allowing thetelevision service provider to log whether the user has accessed thelink.

FIG. 1 illustrates a satellite television distribution system 100, inaccordance with certain embodiments of the present disclosure. Whileembodiments detailed herein may be applied to various televisiondistribution systems, including cable and IP, a satellite televisiondistribution system is provided as an example. Satellite televisiondistribution system 100 may include: a television service providersystem 110, satellite transmitter equipment 120, satellites 130, asatellite dish 140, a television receiver 150, and a display device 160.Alternate embodiments of satellite television distribution system 100may include fewer or greater numbers of components. While only onesatellite dish 140, television receiver 150, and display device 160(collectively referred to as “user equipment”) are illustrated, itshould be understood that in actual practice multiple (e.g., tens,thousands, millions) pieces of user equipment may receive televisionsignals from satellites 130. And, while FIG. 1 illustrates an example ofa satellite-based television channel distribution system, it should beunderstood that certain embodiments of the present disclosure could beimplemented in other content distribution systems, such as cabletelevision distribution systems.

Television service provider system 110 and satellite transmitterequipment 120 may be operated by a television service provider. Atelevision service provider may distribute television channels (e.g.,broadcast television programming), on-demand television/movieprogramming, audio programming (e.g., music), programming information(e.g., electronic programming guides), and/or other services tousers/subscribers. Television service provider system 110 may receivefeeds of one or more television channels from various sources. Todistribute television channels to users, feeds of the televisionchannels may be relayed to user equipment via satellite transmitterequipment 120, uplink signals 170, satellites 130 and satellitetransponder streams 180.

Television service provider system 110, in addition to providing datastreams of television programming to television receiver 150 viasatellite may be configured to insert tags into the data stream oftelevision programming using a tag insertion module 111. FIG. 2 is asimplified illustration of an embodiment of a content handling system200, in accordance with certain embodiments of the present disclosure.In certain embodiments, the content handling system 200 may be includedin the television service provider system 110. In certain embodiments,the content handling system 200 may be separate from, and providecontent to, the television service provider system 110. In certainembodiments, the content handling system 200 may be included in theend-user system and may be included in the television receiver 170. Incertain embodiments, various features of the content handling system 200may be distributed between the television tuner device 170 and upstreamof the television tuner device 170.

The content handling system 200 may process content and provide taggedcontent. In some embodiments, the processing of content and provision oftagged may be performed by the tag insertion module 111. The taginsertion module 111 may include instructions retained in acomputer-readable media and to be executed by one or more processors.The content handling system 200 may receive one or more content sources202, which may correspond to movies, television programs, portionsthereof, etc. The content sources 202 may include various components,including without limitation, one or more video tracks, audio tracks,metadata tracks, close captioning information, and/or the like. In someembodiments, the content handling system 200 may retain received contentsources 202 in one or more content repositories (not shown). The contentrepositories may include any suitable form of storage media, such as anysuitable form disclosed herein.

The content handling system 200 may receive item information 204. Theitem information 204 could correspond to any suitable information aboutitems represented in the content. The item information 204 couldindicate which items represented in the content are to be tagged. Insome embodiments, the item information 204 could have originated atleast in part from the good/service provider 115. Alternatively oradditionally, the item information 204 could be input by the televisionservice provider system 110, automatically or manually by an agentthereof.

The content handling system 200 may generate one or more tags 210corresponding to the items in the content and may output tag processedcontent 216. The tag processed content 216 may include the one or moretags 210. For example, the one or more tags 210 could be inserted intothe content stream or could be sent separately from the content streamin various embodiments. In some embodiments, the tag processed content216 may be stored at least temporarily in one or more repositories 214.In some embodiments, tag data may be stored at least temporarily in oneor more repositories 214. The tag data retained could be retained inwhole or in part, for example, for recordkeeping and/or to facilitate atag reception module 112 of the television service provider system 110discussed further herein.

The content handling system 200 may include an item identificationcomponent 206 that may identify one or more items to be tagged based atleast in part on the item information 204. In some embodiments, the itemidentification component 206 may be configured to examine video contentof a content source 202 for one or more items to be tagged. In someembodiments, the item information 204 may sufficiently identify one ormore items in the video content such that the video content need not beexamined. The item identification component 206 may receive or assignpacket identifiers to identify data of the content that is to betransmitted as part of a data stream to a television receiver and thatis to be associated with one or more tags.

The content handling system 200 may include a tag data handler 208 thatmay generate one or more tags 210 corresponding to the items in thecontent. In some embodiments, the one or more tags 210 may be insertedinto the output video content 212. In some embodiments, the one or moretags 210 may not be inserted into the output video content 212 but maybe sent with the output video content 212.

Data transmitted as part of a data stream to a television receiver maybe packetized and assigned packet identifiers. A particular packetidentifier may be associated with data packets related to tags for aparticular television channel. Tag data may include or otherwise beassociated with a tag identifier and may include item identificationcomponent(s) that facilitate identification of tagged items in anysuitable manner. For example, tag data may include any one orcombination of a packet identifier, an indication of a period of time(or other measure of time, e.g., a number of frames), a start frame, anend frame, and/or the like.

In some embodiments, a tag inserted into a data stream, which may be atransponder stream related to television receiver 150 via a transponderof a satellite, may be associated with a period of time. If, during theperiod of time associated with the tag while viewing the televisionchannel associated with the tag (in some embodiments, regardless ofwhether the broadcast of the television channel is being viewed live ora recording made by the television receiver), a user provides inputcorresponding to a selection of a user-selectable option presented withcontent being presented with the display device 160 and/or 161, theselection may correspond to a request for information about the tag totelevision receiver 150. In response to the selection, information aboutthe product or service associated with the tag may be provided to theuser.

In some embodiments, tag data could define one or more areas withinframes that correspond to certain objects represented within the frames.For example, a dress worn by an actress could be represented within theframes, and the tag data could define the area within the frame thatcorresponds to the representation of the dress. Such tag data coulddefine the area of interest in any suitable way in various embodimentswhich could be by way of any one or combination of mattes, masks, pixelidentification (which could, for example, include identification ofpixel coordinates and ranges thereof to define areas of interest), pixelcolor component characteristics such as color component values,overlays, and/or the like, allowing for correlation of a user selectionto the area of interest in any suitable way. In some embodiments, aprocessor (such as a main processor, a core processor, digital signalprocessor, and/or like) may take a definition of the area of interestwith respect to one or more reference frames and may performauto-correlation of related images in a video stream to identify/definethe areas of interest in other frames of the video sequence thatrepresent an item of interest. Image characteristics (e.g., color,brightness, etc.) of the area of interest with respect to the referenceframe(s) could be measured, quantified, and/or otherwise identified, andmatched with measured image characteristics of the other frames todefine the area of interest in multiple frames in an image-changingsequence. Accordingly, certain embodiments may allow for handling thecomplexity of multiple on-screen options by differentiating particularitems with tracking information in dynamic, image-changing content.

In some embodiments, additional data about the product or servicerelated to the tag may be transmitted to television receiver 150, suchas a photograph or image, a description, pricing information, a link toa webpage selling the product, etc. For example, in some embodiments,tag data may include one or more option components corresponding to thetagged items. The option components could include additional data aboutthe product or service related to the tag. In various embodiments, theoption components may include any suitable information, which mayinclude without limitation any one or combination of logic, links,content, instructions, specifications, other indications, and/or thelike to facilitate user-selectable options presentable via thetelevision receiver. In some embodiments, one or more option componentsmay be separate from the associated identification components of a tagand may be transmitted separately to the television receiver.

Referring again to FIG. 1, in some embodiments, an indication of the tag(e.g., an identifier) and an indication of a user account associatedwith television receiver 150 may be transmitted to a tag receptionmodule 112 of the television service provider system 110. Thiscommunication may occur via one or more networks separate from thesatellite-based television programming distribution network. Forexample, a local wireless network 191 (e.g., an 802.11 home network) andnetwork 190 which may be the Internet, may be used for bidirectionalcommunication between television receiver 150 and the tag receptionmodule 112 of the television service provider system. The tag receptionmodule 112 may make an entry in monetization database 113 indicating theuser account and the tag requested.

The television service provider system may send additional informationabout the product or service related to the tag to a separate device ofthe user. One or more product/service information repositories 114 mayretain additional information about the product or service. In someembodiments, such additional information could have originated at leastin part from the good/service provider 115. Alternatively oradditionally, such additional information could be gathered by thetelevision service provider system 110.

A separate computerized device associated with the user account may bedetermined. One or more user information databases 115 may any suitableinformation about users to facilitate embodiments of this disclosure.User information may include any one or combination of user accountinformation, contact information (such as linked email accountinformation, telephone information, etc.), notification preferences(such as whether the user has accepted email notifications, pushnotifications, text message notifications, etc. as means of relayinginformation corresponding to tag selections), user profile information(such as information relating to different user profiles set up fordifferent members of a family), location information, user viewingintelligence data, user tag selection data (such as selectionstatistics, interest data corresponding to selections such as categoriesof interests, option selection history, etc.), end-userdevice/configuration information, and/or the like. In some embodiments,a user may have a specialized application installed on a device, such asa smartphone or tablet computer, that is configured to receive datarelated to tags that the user has previously selected. In someembodiments, the information about the product or service is routed toan email address of the user, such that the information may be accessedby the user via whichever arrangement the user typically uses to accessemail. For example, whether a specialized application is user-installed,a webpage, or email, a user may use computerized user device 161 toreceive the information about the product or service related to the tag.Upon accessing the specialized application, email, or logging in to awebpage, the user may be presented with additional information about theproduct or service linked with the tag. If such additional informationabout the product or service is accessed, television service providersystem 110 may make an additional entry in the monetization database 113indicating that additional information regarding the product or servicehas been received by the user.

In some embodiments, the television service provider may receiveadvertising revenue from such insertion of tags into the data stream.Payment to the television service provider for such advertising may bebased on the number of user who: provide input requesting informationabout the product or service and/or the number of users who actuallyview the additional information about the product or service. Thetelevision service provider may receive more revenue when the additionalinformation is actually viewed or otherwise accessed by a user. Aproduct or service provider 115 may request the advertising and may paya fee at least partially based on the number of users who provided inputrequesting information related to the tag and/or based on the number ofuser who actually accessed the additional information about the productor service.

In some embodiments, the television service provider may provide aredirect service. Rather than providing additional information about aproduct or service in response to a request related to a specific tagfrom a user, the television service provider may redirect the user to awebsite maintained by the product or service provider 115. Thetelevision service provider may note the redirect in monetizationdatabase 113 to be used for billing purposes with the product or serviceprovider 115. Regardless, from the user's point of view, by providinginput while a tag is active (e.g., during the period of time associatedwith the tag) of a particular television channel, the user is providedthe opportunity to view additional information about the related productor service via another device, such as computerized user device 161.

In some embodiments, in addition to a tag, additional data about aproduct or service is transmitted via satellite (or some other form oftelevision programming distribution) to television receiver 150. Thisadditional information may be unacces se d unless a user provides inputselecting a tag during the period of time associated with the tag.

If the user input is selected, additional data about the product orservice may be transmitted from television receiver 150 to computerizeduser device 161 via network 191 without using network 190. In suchembodiments, network 191 may represent a direct connection, such as WiFiDIRECT, a BLUETOOTH communication link, or near-field communication. Insome embodiments, although not explicitly shown in FIG. 1, thetelevision receiver 150 may include one or more logical modulesconfigured to implement a television steaming media functionality thatencodes video into a particular format for transmission over theInternet such as to allow users to remotely view and control a homecable, satellite, or personal video recorder system from anInternet-enabled computer with a broadband Internet connection. TheSlingbox® by Sling Media, Inc. of Foster City, Calif., is one example ofa product that implements such functionality. Additionally, thetelevision receiver 150 may be configured to include any number of othervarious components or logical modules that are implemented in hardware,software, firmware, or any combination thereof, and such components orlogical modules may or may not be implementation-specific. In someembodiments, the computerized user device 161 could have remote controlfunctionality enabling communication with the television receiver 150 tocontrol the television receiver 150, and such control could be providedby way of a touchscreen of the computerized user device 161, forexample. In some embodiments, streaming video service, which couldinclude content recorded via the DVR of the television receiver 150,could be provided to the computerized user device 161 by way of thenetwork 190, 191, and/or another network.

In some embodiments, television receiver 150 may present a link inresponse to user input selecting a tag. The link, if accessed by theuser, may identify the tag and the user account. This link may bedirected to a webpage maintained by the television service provider,which may in turn redirect to a webpage operated by the product orservice provider. First directing to a webpage operated by thetelevision service provider may allow the television service provide tostore data indicating that a user associated with the user account hasrequested additional information about the product or service associatedwith the tag, thus allowing the tags to be monetized.

In some embodiments, certain user information may be gathered by the tagreception module 112 and retained in the one or more user informationrepositories 115. The tag reception module 112 may use the userinformation to for targeted advertising directed to particularusers/end-user equipment. Advertising content could be provided by thegood/service providers 115 and retained in the one or moreproduct/service information repositories 114, in certain embodiments.Banner ads, for example, or any suitable advertising, could be directedbased on user tag selection data. Past tag selection data could becharacterized and correlated to certain interests and/or interestcategories. Advertising content may be selected based at least in parton the user tag selection data and/or any other suitable userinformation. For example, an end user may indicate an interest inparticular categories of items (say, female apparel) by selecting tagsrelated to that category (say, tags related to actresses' clothing), andadvertising content related to female apparel may be selected for theparticular end user.

The selected advertising content could be delivered for an end user invarious ways according to various embodiments. In some embodiments, theselected advertising content may be transmitted via any one orcombination of text message, push notification, email, the end-usercomputing device 161, a specialized application thereof, etc., forexample, based at least in part on the user's notification preferences.In some embodiments, the selected advertising content may be transmittedvia the television receiver 150. For example, advertising content couldbe conveyed via an unused tuner of the television receiver 150.Advertising content could be conveyed with EPG information. In someembodiments, the advertising content could include a video/audio-videostream. The stream and/or other advertising content could be an overlaythat is presented with the display 160 in a part of the screen (such asa picture-in-picture window, a screen border, a pop-up, etc.). Theadvertising content could be presented during full-screen viewing and/orEPG viewing.

Computerized user device 161 may permit a user to view information aboutthe product or service tagged, and/or related advertising content,without interrupting playback or a broadcast of television programming.Further, information about the product or service and/or relatedadvertising content may be made available to the user via computerizeduser device 161 while television programming is being output bytelevision receiver 150 or, if the user prefers, the information aboutthe product or service may be made available to the user at a later timewhen the user chooses to access the information via computerized userdevice 161.

Receiving equipment may be configured to decode signals received fromsatellites 130 via satellite dish 140 for display on a user displaydevice, such as display device 160. Receiving equipment (which isillustrated in FIG. 1 by television receiver 150), may be incorporatedas part of a television or may be part of a separate device, commonlyreferred to as a set-top box (STB). Receiving equipment may include asatellite tuner configured to receive and to decode signals representingtelevision channels, and a digital video recorder DVR configured torecord and store television and other broadcast content. As such,television receiver 150 may decode signals received via satellite dish140 and provide an output to display device 160. While FIG. 1illustrates an embodiment of television receiver 150 as separate fromdisplay device 160, it should be understood that, in other embodiments,similar functions may be performed by a television receiver integratedwith display device 160. Display device 160 may be used to present videoand/or audio decoded by television receiver 150. In some embodiments,the display device may be a television, monitor, or some other devicethat is configured to display video.

Network 190 may serve as a secondary communication channel betweentelevision service provider system 110 and television receiver 150. Viasuch a secondary communication channel, bidirectional exchange of datamay occur. As such, user feedback and other user data may be transmittedto television service provider system 110 via network 190. Data may alsobe transmitted from television service provider system 110 to televisionreceiver 150 via network 190. Network 190 may be the Internet.

FIG. 3 illustrates a block diagram of an embodiment of a televisionreceiver 300. Television receiver 300 may be in the form of a separatedevice (e.g., such as the separate television receiver 150 illustratedin FIG. 1 that is a set top box) configured to be connected with apresentation or user device, such as display device 160 of FIG. 1.Alternatively, television receiver 300 may be incorporated into anotherdevice, such as display device 160. Television receiver 300 may include:processors 310, tuners 315, network interface 320, storage medium/memorysystem 325, audio/video decoder 333, television interface 335, userinterface 350, and/or descrambling engine 365.

Processors 310 may include one or more general-purpose processorsconfigured to perform processes such as tuning to a particular channel,displaying an electronic programming guide (EPG), and/or receiving andprocessing input from a user or control information from televisionservice provider system 110. Processors 310 may include one or morespecial purpose processors. For example, processors 310 may include oneor more processors dedicated to decoding video signals from a particularformat, such as MPEG, for output and display on a television and forperforming decryption.

Tuners 315 may include one or more tuners used to tune to televisionchannels, such as television channels transmitted via satellite orcable. Each tuner contained in tuners 315 may be capable of receivingand processing a stream of data in a satellite transponder stream 180(or a cable RF channel).

Network interface 320 may be used to communicate via an alternatecommunication channel with television service provider system 110, suchas via the network 190 seen in FIG. 1. For example, while the primarycommunication channel may be one or more of the satellites 130 (whichmay be unidirectional to the television receiver 300), an alternatecommunication channel (which may be bidirectional) may be via a network190 and network interface 320. Network interface 320 may be configuredto communicate with networks 190 and/or 191. Network interface 320 maycommunicate via network 191 with computerized user device 161. In someembodiments, network interface 320 may communicate directly (e.g., via awire or wirelessly) with computerized user device 161.

Storage medium 325 may represent database or memory systems havingcomputer readable storage medium. Storage medium 325 may include memoryand/or a hard drive. Storage medium 325 may be used to store informationreceived from one or more satellites and/or information received vianetwork interface 320. Storage medium 325 may store information relatedto an electronic programming guide (EPG) in an EPG database/storage 330,and/or recorded television programs (and related control information) ina DVR database/storage 345. While not illustrated, the storage medium325 may also include separate memory for storing data and instructions(other than those relating to the illustrated EPG or DVR functions) foruse in various processes carried out by the television receiver 300. Asshould be apparent, and as a result of the processing and variousstorage functions illustrated (such as DVR database 345), the televisionreceiver 300 may perform, among other things, functions commonly thoughtof as being those associated with a discrete digital video recorder(DVR) device.

EPG database 330 may store information related to television channelsand the timing of programs appearing on such television channels. EPGdatabase 330 may be used to inform users of what television channels orprograms are available and/or provide recommendations to the user. EPGdatabase 330 may provide the user with a visual interface displayed bydisplay device 160 that allows the user to browse and select televisionchannels and/or television programs for viewing at display device 160and/or recording via DVR database 345. In one embodiment, the visualinterface may allow a user to select television programs for whichcommercials are to be automatically skipped. Information used topopulate EPG database 330 may be received via network interface 320and/or via satellites, such as satellites 130 of FIG. 1 via tuners 315.For instance, updates to EPG database 330 may be received periodicallyvia satellite.

Tag database 340 may receive and store, at least temporarily, tag data.Tag database 340 may be configured to receive data from packetsidentified with a particular PID. A table, such as a network informationtable, program map table, or program access table, may indicate a PIDassociated with tags for a particular television channel. Packets forsuch a television channel may be ignored unless the television channelis being recorded or the broadcast of the television channel is beingoutput live. In some embodiments, for a tag, tag database 340 mayindicate: an identifier of the tag (e.g., an identifier that can bedistinguished from identifiers linked with other tags), and a timeperiod. In some embodiments, for a given television channel, only asingle tag may be active at a time. In other embodiments, multiple tagsmay be active simultaneously, for example, when user-selectable optionsare provided in relation to concurrently portrayed products. A tag maybe active over a time period, which may be defined in terms of absolutetime (e.g., seconds), frames, or some other measure that can beconverted to time. For instance, a tag may indicate a start time (e.g.,an absolute time, a frame identifier, or some other measure) and theperiod of time. The tag data could indicate a time period by way ofordinal frame sequencing, frame time coding, display time, and/or in anysuitable manner.

In some embodiments, during a period of time when a user-selectableoption is available to a user, if a user provides input selecting thetag (e.g., presses a dedicated “tag” button on a remote control incommunication with the television receiver), this active tag would beselected. If multiple user-selectable options are availablesimultaneously, one or more buttons on a remote control could be used toselect a particular user-selectable option. In addition or inalternative, one or more user-selectable options may be available duringthe time period for on-screen selection via a remote control and aselection function (e.g., an on-screen selector such as a hoveringindicator of any suitable form) and/or one or more buttons on televisionreceiver 300 that allows a user to interact with television receiver300. In some embodiments, an indication of the user-selectable optionassociated with an item represented on-screen could be presented toindicate that the user may select an option to obtain furtherinformation. Any suitable indication of the user-selectable option maybe employed, such as a highlighting of the item, for example, with anoutline of a distinguishing color, a star, a flag, a pop-up notificationnear the item and/or near the border of the screen, etc. In someembodiments, by hovering over an item represented on-screen with aselector tool, an indication of the user-selectable option (which couldbe a second indication in some implementations) may be presented,prompting the user to select the option if desired. Such an indicationof the user-selectable option could include textual descriptiveinformation. In addition or in alternative, one or more user-selectableoptions may be available during the time period for selection via aspecialized application on a computerized user device (e.g., a tabletcomputer).

Associated with the tag, tag database 340 may also store: informationabout the product or service, and/or information sufficient to generatea link (particular to the user account associated with televisionreceiver 300 and the product or service linked with the tag). In someembodiments, a link could direct the user to a website associated withthe goods or service provider. The user could access the website orother information for display with the television display and/or thecomputerized user device.

Audio/video decoder 333 may serve to convert encoded video and audiointo a format suitable for output to a display device. For instance,audio/video decoder 333 may receive MPEG video and audio from storagemedium 325 or descrambling engine 365 to be output to a television.Audio/video decoder 333 may convert the MPEG video and audio into aformat appropriate to be displayed by a television or other form ofdisplay device and audio into a format appropriate to be output fromspeakers, respectively.

Television interface 335 may serve to output a signal to display device160 (or another form of display device) in a proper format fordisplaying of video and for playing audio to the user/viewer. As such,television interface 335 may output one or more television channels andmay output stored television programing from storage medium 325 (e.g.,from DVR database 345 and/or information from EPG database 330) to atelevision for presentation.

Digital video recorder (DVR) database 345 may permit a televisionchannel to be recorded for a period of time. DVR database 345 may storetimers that are used by processors 310 to determine when a televisionchannel should be automatically tuned to and recorded to DVR database345 of storage medium 325. Timers may be set by the television serviceprovider and/or one or more users of the television receiver 300. DVRdatabase 345 may be configured by a user to record particular televisionprograms, for later playback at the convenience of the user.

User interface 350 may include a remote control (physically separatefrom television receiver 300) and/or one or more buttons on televisionreceiver 300 that allows a user to interact with television receiver300. Among other things, a user interface 350 may be used to select forviewing a television channel as it is broadcast, for interacting withdata in EPG database 330, and/or for viewing programs recorded at DVRdatabase 345. User interface 350 may have a dedicated button that allowsa user to select a tag with a single action. As such, selecting a tagmay involve the user only pressing a single button once. This maytrigger information about the product or service related to the tag tobe made available to the user via a link and/or additional informationpresented via a separate computerized user device.

Descrambling engine 365 is used to descramble video and/or audiocorresponding to television channels for storage and/or presentation.Video and/or audio data contained in the transponder stream 180 receivedby tuners 315 may be scrambled by the service provider. The video and/oraudio may be descrambled by descrambling engine 365 using a scramblecontrol identifier present within the data packet containing thescrambled video or audio, in conjunction with encryption keys/controlwords stored at the television receiver 300. Descrambled video and/oraudio may be output by descrambling engine 365 to storage medium 325 forstorage (at DVR database 345) and/or to audio/video decoder 333 foroutput to display device 160 or other presentation equipment viatelevision interface 335.

For ease of description, television receiver 300 of FIG. 3 has beenreduced to a block diagram, and some parts not necessary forunderstanding the embodiments of the present disclosure have beenomitted. In other embodiments of television receiver 300, fewer orgreater numbers of components may be present, and various illustratedmodules of television receiver 300 may be combined into a fewer numberof modules or divided into a greater number of modules. Also, it shouldbe understood that the various components of television receiver 300 maybe implemented using hardware, firmware, software, and/or somecombination thereof. For example, functions of EPG database 330 and DVRdatabase 345 may have their functions performed using, in part,instructions or processes executed by one or more of the processors 310.Further, some routing between the various modules of television receiver300 has been illustrated. Such illustrations are for exemplary purposesonly. Two modules not being directly or indirectly connected does notindicate the modules cannot communicate. Rather, connections betweenmodules of the television receiver 300 are intended only to indicatepossible common data routing.

FIG. 4 illustrates an embodiment of a method 400 which may be performedusing the systems, components, and/or devices of FIGS. 1-2. One or moreinstances of components of computer system 500 of FIG. 5 may be used inperforming method 400. Teachings of the present disclosure may beimplemented in a variety of configurations that may correspond to thesystems disclosed herein. As such, certain steps of the method 400, andthe other methods disclosed herein, may be omitted, and the order of thesteps may be shuffled in any suitable manner and may depend on theimplementation chosen. Moreover, while the following steps of the method400, and those of the other methods disclosed herein, may be separatedfor the sake of description, it should be understood that certain stepsmay be performed simultaneously or substantially simultaneously.

According to one embodiment, the method 400 may begin at step 410. Atstep 410, one or more tags may be inserted into a television programmingstream by a television service provider. For each of the one or moretags, a respective indication of the tag may be stored in a database bythe television service provider, along with any suitable informationassociated with the tag such as that discussed herein. And, as discussedherein, in various embodiments, the tag may include a start point, aperiod of time, an identifier unique from other identifiers of othertags, and/or any suitable tag data.

At step 420, a data stream (e.g., a transponder stream) may be receivedby a television receiver and descrambled, and a television channel maybe output for presentation via a display device. Content may be outputfor display during the period of time. The period of time may have somerelation to the tag, for example, the product or service associated withthe tag may be represented in the content during the period of time.

At step 430, a tag request may be received by the television receiverfrom a user interface, such as a user pressing a dedicated “tag request”button on a remote control, one or more other buttons on a remotecontrol used to select a particular user-selectable option, one or moreuser-selectable options available via a computerized user device, and/orthe like. It may be determined which tag with which the tag request isassociated based on the time at which the tag request is received. Ifduring the period of time, it is determined that the tag request isassociated with the tag.

At step 440, in some embodiments, a determination is made as to whetheran internet connection is available for the television receiver. If yes,method 400 proceeds to step 450. At step 450, an indication of the useraccount associated with the television receiver and the identifier ofthe tag may be transmitted to a television service provider system. Atstep 460, a database may be updated indicating that a user associatedwith the user account requested information on the tag. This informationmay be used for billing the advertiser associated with the tag.

At step 470, information about the product or service may be provided toa user device associated with the user account. In some embodiments, theinformation about the product or service associated with the tag is sentto an email account associated with the user account. In someembodiments, the relationship between the tag and the user account isstored at least until a user logs in via a specialized application orwebsite, at which time additional information about the product orservice may be provided. When such additional information is provided tothe user, an additional entry may be made in the database, indicatingthat such additional information on the product or service has beenprovided to the user. The television service provider may be able tocharge the advertiser an increased amount of money for such delivery ofinformation. In some embodiments, the television service provider mayredirect the user to a webpage operated by the advertiser of the goodsor services. During these preceding steps, the television programmingbeing output by the television receiver is unaffected, as such, the userproviding a tag request does not negatively impact the viewingexperience, regardless of whether the television program being viewedlive or from a recording stored by the television receiver.

At step 480, the advertiser may be charged by the television serviceprovider based on the number of tag requests and/or information aboutthe product or service actually delivered based on the tag requests. Forexample, if a user provides a tag request but never views the additionalinformation about the product or service, this may be of little to nobenefit to the advertiser. As such, advertising fees may be at leastpartially based on whether the additional information was likely viewedby a user via a computerized user device.

If an internet connection is not available at step 440, method 400 mayproceed to step 490. At step 490, information about the product orservice may be transmitted to a user device via a local network or adirect connection. Such information may then be accessed by the uservia, for example, a specialized application operating on the userdevice. In some embodiments, if a local network connection is notavailable and a direct connection to a user device is not available, alink may be presented on-screen (or available via a menu). Accessing thelink may direct the user to a webpage operated by the television serviceprovider, which may log that a user associated with the user account hasrequested additional information related to the tag (for billing theadvertiser) and may redirect the user to a webpage operated by theadvertiser associated with the goods or services.

A computer system as illustrated in FIG. 5 may be incorporated as partof the previously described computerized devices. For example, computersystem 500 can represent some of the components of the televisionreceivers, computerized user devices, and/or television service providersystems discussed in this application. FIG. 5 provides a schematicillustration of one embodiment of a computer system 500 that can performthe methods provided by various embodiments. It should be noted thatFIG. 5 is meant only to provide a generalized illustration of variouscomponents, any or all of which may be utilized as appropriate. FIG. 5,therefore, broadly illustrates how individual system elements may beimplemented in a relatively separated or relatively more integratedmanner.

The computer system 500 is shown comprising hardware elements that canbe electrically coupled via a bus 505 (or may otherwise be incommunication, as appropriate). The hardware elements may include one ormore processors 510, including without limitation one or moregeneral-purpose processors and/or one or more special-purpose processors(such as digital signal processing chips, graphics accelerationprocessors, and/or the like); one or more input devices 515, which caninclude without limitation a mouse, a keyboard, and/or the like; and oneor more output devices 520, which can include without limitation adisplay device, a printer, and/or the like.

The computer system 500 may further include (and/or be in communicationwith) one or more non-transitory storage devices 525, which cancomprise, without limitation, local and/or network accessible storage,and/or can include, without limitation, a disk drive, a drive array, anoptical storage device, a solid-state storage device, such as a randomaccess memory (“RAM”), and/or a read-only memory (“ROM”), which can beprogrammable, flash-updateable and/or the like. Such storage devices maybe configured to implement any appropriate data stores, includingwithout limitation, various file systems, database structures, and/orthe like.

The computer system 500 might also include a communications subsystem530, which can include without limitation a modem, a network card(wireless or wired), an infrared communication device, a wirelesscommunication device, and/or a chipset (such as a Bluetooth™ device, an802.11 device, a WiFi device, a WiMax device, cellular communicationfacilities, etc.), and/or the like. The communications subsystem 530 maypermit data to be exchanged with a network (such as the networkdescribed below, to name one example), other computer systems, and/orany other devices described herein. In many embodiments, the computersystem 500 will further comprise a working memory 535, which can includea RAM or ROM device, as described above.

The computer system 500 also can comprise software elements, shown asbeing currently located within the working memory 535, including anoperating system 540, device drivers, executable libraries, and/or othercode, such as one or more application programs 545, which may comprisecomputer programs provided by various embodiments, and/or may bedesigned to implement methods, and/or configure systems, provided byother embodiments, as described herein. Merely by way of example, one ormore procedures described with respect to the method(s) discussed abovemight be implemented as code and/or instructions executable by acomputer (and/or a processor within a computer); in an aspect, then,such code and/or instructions can be used to configure and/or adapt ageneral purpose computer (or other device) to perform one or moreoperations in accordance with the described methods.

A set of these instructions and/or code might be stored on anon-transitory computer-readable storage medium, such as thenon-transitory storage device(s) 525 described above. In some cases, thestorage medium might be incorporated within a computer system, such ascomputer system 500. In other embodiments, the storage medium might beseparate from a computer system (e.g., a removable medium, such as acompact disc), and/or provided in an installation package, such that thestorage medium can be used to program, configure, and/or adapt a generalpurpose computer with the instructions/code stored thereon. Theseinstructions might take the form of executable code, which is executableby the computer system 500 and/or might take the form of source and/orinstallable code, which, upon compilation and/or installation on thecomputer system 500 (e.g., using any of a variety of generally availablecompilers, installation programs, compression/decompression utilities,etc.), then takes the form of executable code.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that substantialvariations may be made in accordance with specific requirements. Forexample, customized hardware might also be used, and/or particularelements might be implemented in hardware, software (including portablesoftware, such as applets, etc.), or both. Further, connection to othercomputing devices such as network input/output devices may be employed.

As mentioned above, in one aspect, some embodiments may employ acomputer system (such as the computer system 500) to perform methods inaccordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure. Accordingto a set of embodiments, some or all of the procedures of such methodsare performed by the computer system 500 in response to processor 510executing one or more sequences of one or more instructions (which mightbe incorporated into the operating system 540 and/or other code, such asan application program 545) contained in the working memory 535. Suchinstructions may be read into the working memory 535 from anothercomputer-readable medium, such as one or more of the non-transitorystorage device(s) 525. Merely by way of example, execution of thesequences of instructions contained in the working memory 535 mightcause the processor(s) 510 to perform one or more procedures of themethods described herein.

The terms “machine-readable medium” and “computer-readable medium,” asused herein, refer to any medium that participates in providing datathat causes a machine to operate in a specific fashion. In an embodimentimplemented using the computer system 500, various computer-readablemedia might be involved in providing instructions/code to processor(s)510 for execution and/or might be used to store and/or carry suchinstructions/code. In many implementations, a computer-readable mediumis a physical and/or tangible storage medium. Such a medium may take theform of a non-volatile media or volatile media. Non-volatile mediainclude, for example, optical and/or magnetic disks, such as thenon-transitory storage device(s) 525. Volatile media include, withoutlimitation, dynamic memory, such as the working memory 535.

Common forms of physical and/or tangible computer-readable mediainclude, for example, a floppy disk, a flexible disk, hard disk,magnetic tape, or any other magnetic medium, a CD-ROM, any other opticalmedium, any other physical medium with patterns of marks, a RAM, a PROM,EPROM, a FLASH-EPROM, any other memory chip or cartridge, or any othermedium from which a computer can read instructions and/or code.

Various forms of computer-readable media may be involved in carrying oneor more sequences of one or more instructions to the processor(s) 510for execution. Merely by way of example, the instructions may initiallybe carried on a magnetic disk and/or optical disc of a remote computer.A remote computer might load the instructions into its dynamic memoryand send the instructions as signals over a transmission medium to bereceived and/or executed by the computer system 500.

The communications subsystem 530 (and/or components thereof) generallywill receive signals, and the bus 505 then might carry the signals(and/or the data, instructions, etc. carried by the signals) to theworking memory 535, from which the processor(s) 510 retrieves andexecutes the instructions. The instructions received by the workingmemory 535 may optionally be stored on a non-transitory storage device525 either before or after execution by the processor(s) 510.

It should further be understood that the components of computer system500 can be distributed across a network. For example, some processingmay be performed in one location using a first processor while otherprocessing may be performed by another processor remote from the firstprocessor. Other components of computer system 500 may be similarlydistributed.

The methods, systems, and devices discussed above are examples. Variousconfigurations may omit, substitute, or add various procedures orcomponents as appropriate. For instance, in alternative configurations,the methods may be performed in an order different from that described,and/or various stages may be added, omitted, and/or combined. Also,features described with respect to certain configurations may becombined in various other configurations. Different aspects and elementsof the configurations may be combined in a similar manner. Also,technology evolves and, thus, many of the elements are examples and donot limit the scope of the disclosure or claims.

Moreover, the teachings of the present disclosure may be applied notonly to television programming, but also may be applied to any videostream. For example, the teachings may be applied to IP content, DVDcontent, etc. And, in addition, the teachings of the present disclosureare not limited to television receivers, but also may be applied to anymedia device and corresponding display method, including, by way ofexample without limitation, projectors, smart glasses, and the like.

Specific details are given in the description to provide a thoroughunderstanding of example configurations (including implementations).However, configurations may be practiced without these specific details.For example, well-known circuits, processes, algorithms, structures, andtechniques have been shown without unnecessary detail in order to avoidobscuring the configurations. This description provides exampleconfigurations only, and does not limit the scope, applicability, orconfigurations of the claims. Rather, the preceding description of theconfigurations will provide those skilled in the art with an enablingdescription for implementing described techniques. Various changes maybe made in the function and arrangement of elements without departingfrom the spirit or scope of the disclosure.

Also, configurations may be described as a process which is depicted asa flow diagram or block diagram. Although each may describe theoperations as a sequential process, many of the operations can beperformed in parallel or concurrently. In addition, the order of theoperations may be rearranged. A process may have additional steps notincluded in the figure. Furthermore, examples of the methods may beimplemented by hardware, software, firmware, middleware, microcode,hardware description languages, or any combination thereof. Whenimplemented in software, firmware, middleware, or microcode, the programcode or code segments to perform the necessary tasks may be stored in anon-transitory computer-readable medium such as a storage medium.Processors may perform the described tasks.

Having described several example configurations, various modifications,alternative constructions, and equivalents may be used without departingfrom the spirit of the disclosure. For example, the above elements maybe components of a larger system, wherein other rules may takeprecedence over or otherwise modify the application of embodiments ofthe present disclosure. Also, a number of steps may be undertakenbefore, during, or after the above elements are considered. Accordingly,the above description does not bind the scope of the claims.

What is claimed:
 1. A method comprising: receiving, by a media device,content that corresponds to one or both of a movie and a televisionprogram, where at least a portion of the content received represents aproduct; processing, by the media device, a tag associated with thecontent so that the tag defines one or more areas within frames of thecontent corresponding to the one or more areas representing the productin at least the portion of the content received; outputting, by themedia device, at least the portion of the content for presentation witha display of video corresponding to the one or more areas representingthe product; processing, by the media device, a user selectioncorresponding to at least the portion of the content representing theproduct, the user selection being received during display of at leastthe portion of the content; and consequent to the user selection,causing, by the media device, display of information related to theproduct represented by at least the portion of the content in part of ascreen of a display device during display of at least part of thecontent.
 2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the informationrelated to the product is presented as an overlay in the part of thescreen.
 3. The method as recited in claim 2, wherein the overlaycorresponds to a picture-in-picture window, a screen border, or a pop-upwindow.
 4. The method as recited in claim 3, wherein the portion of thecontent is displayed so that video corresponding to the one or moreareas representing the product is displayed while not displaying, atleast initially, any indication of the tag.
 5. The method as recited inclaim 3, further comprising: outputting, by the media device, thecontent for display and causing display of a prompt indicating that auser-selectable option corresponding to the product is available,wherein the prompt visually distinguishes the product from other itemsbeing displayed prior to any user selection corresponding to the tagassociated with the product represented by at least the portion of thecontent.
 6. The method as recited in claim 3, wherein the causingdisplay of the information related to the product comprises causingdisplay of a user-selectable option corresponding to the product, wherethe user-selectable option is associated with a link to furtherinformation associated with the product.
 7. The method as recited inclaim 3, wherein the tag defines one or more areas within frames of thecontent based at least in part on mattes, masks, pixel identification,or image characteristics corresponding to the one or more areasrepresenting the product represented by at least the portion of thecontent received.
 8. A media device comprising: one or more processors;and a memory communicatively coupled with and readable by the one ormore processors and having stored therein processor-readableinstructions which, when executed by the one or more processors, causethe one or more processors to perform: processing content thatcorresponds to one or both of a movie and a television program, where atleast a portion of the content received represents a product; processinga tag associated with the content so that the tag defines one or moreareas within frames of the content corresponding to the one or moreareas representing the product in at least the portion of the contentreceived; causing output of at least the portion of the content forpresentation with a display of video corresponding to the one or moreareas representing the product; processing a user selectioncorresponding to at least the portion of the content representing theproduct, the user selection being received during display of at leastthe portion of the content; and consequent to the user selection,causing display of information related to the product represented by atleast the portion of the content in part of a screen of a display deviceduring display of at least part of the content.
 9. The media device asrecited in claim 8, wherein the information related to the product ispresented as an overlay in the part of the screen.
 10. The media deviceas recited in claim 9, wherein the overlay corresponds to apicture-in-picture window, a screen border, or a pop-up window.
 11. Themedia device as recited in claim 10, wherein the portion of the contentis displayed so that video corresponding to the one or more areasrepresenting the product is displayed while not displaying, at leastinitially, any indication of the tag.
 12. The media device as recited inclaim 10, wherein the processor-readable instructions further cause theone or more processors to perform: causing output of the content fordisplay and causing display of a prompt indicating that auser-selectable option corresponding to the product is available,wherein the prompt visually distinguishes the product from other itemsbeing displayed prior to any user selection corresponding to the tagassociated with the product represented by at least the portion of thecontent.
 13. The media device as recited in claim 10, wherein thecausing display of the information related to the product comprisescausing display of a user-selectable option corresponding to theproduct, where the user-selectable option is associated with a link tofurther information associated with the product.
 14. The media device asrecited in claim 10, wherein the tag defines one or more areas withinframes of the content based at least in part on mattes, masks, pixelidentification, or image characteristics corresponding to the one ormore areas representing the product represented by at least the portionof the content received.
 15. A non-transitory, processor-readable mediumcomprising processor-readable instructions which, when executed by oneor more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform:processing content that corresponds to one or both of a movie and atelevision program, where at least a portion of the content receivedrepresents a product; processing a tag associated with the content sothat the tag defines one or more areas within frames of the contentcorresponding to the one or more areas representing the product in atleast the portion of the content received; causing output of at leastthe portion of the content for presentation with a display of videocorresponding to the one or more areas representing the product;processing a user selection corresponding to at least the portion of thecontent representing the product, the user selection being receivedduring display of at least the portion of the content; and consequent tothe user selection, causing display of information related to theproduct represented by at least the portion of the content in part of ascreen of a display device during display of at least part of thecontent.
 16. The non-transitory, processor-readable medium as recited inclaim 15, wherein the information related to the product is presented asan overlay in the part of the screen.
 17. The non-transitory,processor-readable medium as recited in claim 16, wherein the overlaycorresponds to a picture-in-picture window, a screen border, or a pop-upwindow.
 18. The non-transitory, processor-readable medium as recited inclaim 17, wherein the portion of the content is displayed so that videocorresponding to the one or more areas representing the product isdisplayed while not displaying, at least initially, any indication ofthe tag.
 19. The non-transitory, processor-readable medium as recited inclaim 17, wherein the processor-readable instructions further cause theone or more processors to perform: causing output of the content fordisplay and causing display of a prompt indicating that auser-selectable option corresponding to the product is available,wherein the prompt visually distinguishes the product from other itemsbeing displayed prior to any user selection corresponding to the tagassociated with the product represented by at least the portion of thecontent.
 20. The non-transitory, processor-readable medium as recited inclaim 17, wherein the causing display of the information related to theproduct comprises causing display of a user-selectable optioncorresponding to the product, where the user-selectable option isassociated with a link to further information associated with theproduct.